Building permits decline in October

Building activity declined in October with buildings permits dropping to 583 from 690 the previous month of 2020.

According to data published on Wednesday, the value of building permits rose to €279.3 million in October from €201.6 million in the previous month, whereas the total area reached 239.3 thousand square metres compared with 201.6 thousand square metres. The rise in both the value and total area attributed to increased large projects for which permit was issued in October.

For the period of January – October 2020, 5,689 building permits were issued compared to 5,864 in the corresponding period of the previous year, reflecting the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The total value of these permits decreased by 24.3% and the total area by 9.8%, Cystat said.

By district, building permits in the capital Nicosia for the period of January to October rose by 7.1% year on year with 2,217 building permits issued compared with 2,070, while building permits also rose in Famagusta where an increase of 5.03% was recorded with 271 permits issued in the period of January – October 2020 compared with 258 in the respective period of 2019.

Larnaca registered the largest annual decrease in building permits with 14.5% year on year with permits issued dropping to 768 from 898 in January – October 2019.

Building issued in Limassol during January – October 2020 declined by 7.4% year on year with permits dropping to 1,648 from 1,780 in the corresponding period of last year, while building permits in Pafos dropped by an annual 8.5% with permits issued amounting to 785 for the first ten months of 2020 compared with 858 in the respective period of 2019.